King Xeros
Shortly before Earthfall the ancient Azlanti undertook many strange endeavors including the construction of the ether ship King Xeros. The enigmatic vessel was designed to traverse the Great Beyond, specifically the Ethereal Plane. Construction The King Xeros is constructed from a magical crystal, possibly extraplanar in origin. The crystal is cream in color, slightly translucent, and harder than adamantine. The hull and interior bulkheads are completely seamless and without openings. The only exception is a gangway leading from the abaft deck down to the magazine. The exterior of the hull is covered in indecipherable symbols etched directly into the crystalline surface. The topside is a multi-tiered affair, split into four levels (fore, mid, upper, and abaft decks form bow to stern). None of the decks are railed, but ominous plinths and nodules stud the decks. These irregularities conceal the ships automated defense systems, a series of arcane, auto-targeting gun turrets. A huge, dark coloured spike of crystal extends above and below the split bow. This construction is the phase spike, and provides the ship's extraplanar locomotion. Three large sail-like structures known as ether vanes protrude from the aft superstructure which provide maneuvering in the Ethereal Plane. The King Xeros's conventional propulsion is provided by a cubic helm powered by the life force of sentient beings. Apart from navigational control, the helm provides telepathic access to the ship's on-board defences, power management, the ability to open and close bulkheads. History The King Xeros was constructed and launched shortly before Earthfall. It immediately faded from the waters into which it was launched, and no record of it returning in ancient times has ever been uncovered. However, in the spring of 4709 AR an image of a ship with a winged castle at the stern and a spike at the bow was uncovered in a tomb found beneath the Pyramid of Shadow and Scarabs, indicating that the ship may have visited Osirion near the time of the tomb's construction. For millennia, rumors persisted that the King Xeros floated adrift in the Ethereal Plane. From time to time, reports of boarding actions surface, always reporting the ship as empty. Near the end of the 47th Century AR, the King Xeros was commandeered by a gang of xill who managed to gain rudimentary navigational control of the ship through the use of a xenophage creeper. The ship served as bait to lure plane-hopping treasure hunters into the xills' grasp before jumping away with them aboard. Over the years, the xill discovered the origin of the vessel, and piloted it back to the abundant hunting grounds of Golarion's oceans. In the spring of 4709 AR the King Xeros appeared suddenly in Absalom's harbor and the Harbor Guard and Wave Riders immediately cordoned it off , sending a small boarding party to reconnoiter the strange vessel. By exploiting their connections in the city, the Pathfinder Society secured the opportunity to explore the ship first. The pathfinders explored the ship and defeated its xill crew, rescuing eleven human captives in the process. The explorers also found evidence confirming the King Xeros's presence in ancient Osirion. Moments after the pathfinders and the freed prisoners disembarked, the ship disappeared as suddenly as it had appeared. Presumably the ship's autonomous functions returned it back to the Ethereal Plane. References Category:Ships Category:Azlant